Draco was barely paying attention to class as his thoughts were preoccupied with other things. He would have to go into Hogsmeade at some point that day so he could speak to his mother. The more he thought about the letter and the howler, the more he didn't think it was actually his mother. He knew his mother was far from perfect, but he didn't believe she would jeopardize her relationship with Scorpius.
"Earth to Draco." Neville walked by the Dark Arts classroom on his way to the Great Hall. Class had long since ended and it was time for lunch.
"Hmm?" Draco snapped from his thoughts and looked at Neville.
"Everything alright?" He watched Draco think about his answer, which told him what the answer was. "About the howler?" Draco nodded.
"The thing is, I don't think it was actually my mother who sent it. And I don't think she sent me the letter either." Draco sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "I need to call her to confirm, but it is very possible that it was my father."
"Would he risk making your mother angry?" Neville asked quietly as they entered the Great Hall.
"Honestly, I'm not sure, but I haven't been around them much lately. I just don't think my mother would jeopardize her relationship with Scorpius." Draco replied as they sat at the head table.
"So what are you going to do?" Neville asked.
"Head into Hogsmeade after lunch so I can call my mother. This really isn't something I want to discuss through a fireplace. Too much risk of my dad coming around." He looked at Scorpius who was pushing food around his plate. "I need to know… for his sake."
"And after that?"
"I will talk to Scorpius. But if it turns out that it was my father, I will let my mother deal with that." Draco answered. "I should get going." He added after the bell rang to signal the end of lunch.
"Good luck." Neville squeezed his shoulder and then headed to his afternoon class.
"Uncle Draco?" Alexia approached her uncle with caution.
"I spoke with Professor Abbott. It's not that she doesn't want to see you or talk to you…" He paused to find the right words. He could see that his niece was remorseful. "She needs to focus on resting. We both have to be in London the end of next week and she needs her strength to travel. I'm sure she'll let you know when you can see her." He gave her a weak smile before leaving the Great Hall. He headed to Hogsmeade; his body and mind tense and alert to any noise that came from the forest. He checked the protection charms as he went. He relaxed a little as he entered Hogsmeade and then headed to the Three Broomsticks. He found a secluded corner and pulled out his cell phone. As he pulled up his mother's number, he took a deep breath to steady his nerves.
"Draco?" Narcissa Malfoy's voice sounded surprised by the phone call. "Is everything alright?"
"Is Dad around?" Draco didn't want to bring it up if there was a chance his father was around.
"No, he's in the garden. Do you want me…?" She started.
"No. I need to ask you something without him around." Draco interrupted; steeling his nerve to ask. "Did you send me a letter about my relationship with Amethyst?"
"No, not yet." She sounded genuinely confused by the question. "I haven't gotten round to it. I…" She paused. "I wanted to really consider my response."
"Okay. Did you send Scorpius a howler?" He relaxed a little but was still tense. He was hoping beyond everything that she would say that it wasn't her. He didn't want Scorpius to lose his relationship, however small it was, with his grandmother.
"Absolutely not, Draco." Her voice was stern and she sounded offended at the accusation. "I would never send Scorpius a howler."
"Good. Good." Draco released a long, relieved sigh. He explained what had happened at breakfast and about the letter. He could hear the anger in her voice as she answered.
"If your father…" She hissed. Draco could hear her rummaging through cabinets for something.
"Mum, don't do anything rash. I need to talk to Scorpius and explain things." Draco paused, hesitating on what he was about to say." Mum, Amethyst is…"
"Son." Narcissa interrupted him. "When will you be in London again?"
"End of next week for the trials." He answered. "Amethyst and I are expected to be there. Kyle has asked Amethyst to at least consider being a character witness for one of the charges."
"I'd like to meet her, if that's okay? I can go to Diagon Alley next week. I want to see you at the very least." Her admission took Draco off guard.
"I have some business in Diagon Alley next week while in London. But I'll have to ask Amethyst how she feels about it." He replied. He was completely unsure what Amethyst's answer would be; she was always surprising him with this kind of stuff. He said his good-bye before hanging up. He texted Harry about Amethyst's condition. He ordered a butter beer and then thought about what to tell Scorpius. As he sipped his drink, his phone started ringing. He didn't answer when he noticed that it was his father. After sending the call to voicemail, another call came in. "Hello?"
"Is everything alright?" Harry's voice sounded a little panicked. "Dimitri told me about the attack this morning. Then I received a message from James about the howler…"
"Everything is sorted. Amethyst is expecting to be well enough to attend the trials." Draco answered the first part. He took a sip of his drink before continuing. "My mother says that she did not send the howler. Apparently, she wants to meet Amethyst. We assume that my father was the one who sent the howler, but my mother was going to find out for sure."
"Do you believe her?" Harry asked. He was trying to pull up some long ago memory.
"I have some doubt, but I really don't think she would risk what little relationship she has with her grandson."
"She wants to meet Amethyst? Also, should I be worried about getting a call to Malfoy Manor?"
"I told her not to do anything rash, but I wouldn't be surprised if you do get a call." Draco replied honestly. "I was sent a letter, too, but I'm pretty sure it was my father's doing as well. My mother denied writing it." He explained his theory and why he didn't think it was his mother. "My initial anger needed to subside before I could think straight, though."
"I mean, it does make sense." Harry replied. He was thinking about the Battle of Hogwarts so many years ago.
"What do you mean?" Draco was a little confused.
"When I went to face Voldemort alone in the forest all those years ago, he sent your mother to check to see if I was dead. She could clearly tell that my heart was beating. She asked me if you were alive in the castle. When I nodded, she lied. She risked everything and told Voldemort that I was dead. She knew that the only way she was going to get to the castle to find you, was to lie. A mother's love can be a very powerful thing." Harry explained.
"Thanks for that, Harry. Any doubt I may have had is gone. That story has reaffirmed what I knew of my mother. I have some thinking to do. A lot of changes coming in the next several months. This situation just adds more to it." Draco sighed. He told Harry that he would see him next week and then hung up. He would have to figure out what to do should his mother decide to separate from his father. It was one more thing to discuss with Scorpius. He finished his butter beer and then made his way back to the school.
"How did it go?" Amethyst was sitting up in bed grading papers. Draco pulled up a chair and sat down.
"I talked to my mother and she said it wasn't her. I mostly believed her, but then after talking to Harry, any doubt I had went away." He took her hand in his as he thought about what to say next.
"Drake?" Amethyst squeezed his hand. There was concern in her voice.
"She wants to meet you." Draco watched a few emotions play across her face. "I was surprised by that too." He smiled at her. "I told her that I needed to discuss it with you first. She asked when we'd be in London again. No rush." He added that last part quickly.
"When are you going to talk to Scorpius?" She changed the subject a little.
"As soon as possible; probably after supper. I spoke to Alexia after lunch. I really do think she wants to apologize." He traced the scare on her left palm.
"What's really going on in that head of yours?" She could tell he was deep in thought. "Is it about your parents?" He nodded but didn't say anything. "What are you thinking about?"
"…" He continued to trace the scar and sighed before speaking. "What to do if my mother decides to separate from my father. The Manor is mine. My father has no say in what happens, but I'm not sure if my mother would even want to live in the main house again."
"Has your mother and your aunt ever reconnected?" She thought about Andromeda Tonks, Narcissa's only direct line to the Black family.
"I'm not really sure. Teddy might know, but if my father has ever had anything to say about it, I would say 'no'." Draco made a mental to not to ask Teddy about it. Despite the push for Draco and Astoria to continue the pure-blood ideology with Scorpius, Draco had often wondered if it had been more of his father's insistence.
"I can speak to Alexia tonight or tomorrow, but I'm not sure about meeting your mother just yet. Especially not in the midst of the trials. Madam Pomfrey said that I could eat supper in the Great Hall tonight, but I still need to take it easy."
"The movement will do her some good." Madam Pomfrey said as she walked by with medicine for a student.
"Good." Draco kissed Amethyst's forehead. "I understand about my mother; when you're ready we can arrange something if you want."
"Thanks. About the trial…" Amethyst hesitated. "I have been thinking about what Kyle asked. Even after everything he's done, I truly believe that he didn't know what that Auror was going to do. If he had, he wouldn't have gone through with it, especially if there was a chance that kids would be affected. The only time he ever seemed decent and normal was after his mother was murdered… he wouldn't want anyone, especially a child, to go through that."
"So, you're going to agree to be a character witness for that charge." Draco wasn't surprised by that. Harry had explained what he could about Kyle's interrogation. They had avoided Veritas Serum during all four of the interrogations, but there was still a chance that it could be used during the trials. "Harry will probably want to speak with you before Kyle's trial."
"Probably. Pansy and Goyle are scheduled for Thursday. Kyle and the Auror are scheduled for Friday." Amethyst, carefully, swung her legs over the side of the bed. "Hagrid is covering my classes those two days already. We have to be back by supper on Sunday."
"Harry said we can stay with them instead of a the Leaky Cauldron. I do have some stuff to take care of in Diagon Alley while we're there, but it won't take long. I told my mother that, so there's a good chance she'll want to meet me there at some point." Draco helped her stand. They slowly made their way to the Great Hall. They were heading there early so they wouldn't have to deal with the bustle of the students. As they walked in, Amethyst mulled over what Draco had just said.
"I think it will be good for you to see your mother." She said after a few minutes. "Maybe…" She paused her thought and looked at him. "Depending on what happens, maybe we could get together between Christmas and New Year's. I don't want to change our plans, but maybe we could meet her somewhere on the way to Godric's Hollow?" She watched his facial expression and could tell he was mulling over the idea.
"She'd probably like that, but I'll hold off bringing it up until we see what happens between her and my father." Draco smiled at Amethyst. As they entered the Great Hall, they saw Alexia, Victorie, Teddy, and James sitting at one of the tables.
"Professor!" James and Teddy leapt up and rushed over to them. Instinctually, Draco stepped slightly in front of Amethyst to slow the boys down.
"If I didn't know those boys, I'd think they have a crush on you." Victorie teased as she joined them. "Of course, I'm pretty sure Uncle Charlie does…"
"That's right!" James laughed. "Mum said she received a letter from Uncle Charlie just the other day asking about Professor Abbott."
"He told Dad that he was hoping to see her when he visits for Christmas." Victorie added.
"…" Draco nearly growled as he pulled Amethyst closer to him. Amethyst squeezed his hand and rested her head on his shoulder.
"I should talk to Alexia…" Amethyst said. Alexia hadn't joined them. Draco nodded and then kissed her forehead before letting go.